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Introduction:
Our tradition has become to devote the second Sunday night of each
month to questions and answers submitted by members and guests.
Sometimes we are able to cover several. Other times only one. In
this lesson, we will only be able to grapple with one question. It
is perhaps the thorniest question with which we have dealt. On one
level, I’m leery of dealing with it because of the potential for
my being misunderstood. However, because I think many Christians
are asking this question and because misconceptions about it have
caused unwarranted fear for some and unwarranted comfort for
others, I think it is important for us. Question:
When does sin separate a Christian from God?
As we begin, let me say that my basic answer to this
question is rather simple. I
don’t know. I can talk a great deal about this subject,
however, in the end, I will come back to saying that I don’t
know the exact line on when God says He has had enough sin out of
any one of His children such that we are no longer in fellowship
with Him. Part of me wishes I could give you this line. However, I
am convinced, as with any line that God did not explicitly draw,
He doesn’t want us drawing close to a line. He wants us drawing
close to Him. I believe Philippians 2:12 gives us the explanation. He wants us working on
our salvation with fear and trembling. That phrase carries the
idea of working hard but always having a healthy fear we haven’t
done enough, so we continue to work even harder. He doesn’t want
us working on it until we get to a certain line and then think we
have done enough.
So, my basic answer is I don’t know. However, I don’t
want to leave us there. I want to share some things about this
question that I do know. In doing so, I hope to provide fear for
those who are satisfied in unwarranted comfort and comfort for
those who are living in unwarranted fear. Discussion: I.
If we Christians try to act like we never sin, we are liars
and the truth is not in us. A.
When I was on the radio in Texas, one of our callers
informed me he never sinned. Why would he, he queried, if sinning
would cost him his soul? While I appreciate his fear of sin and
what it would do to his soul, that man was simply not being honest
with himself. B.
I
John 1:8
is clear. The apostle John is speaking. John says if he made the
statement my radio caller had made, he would be lying. What then
do we think about the radio caller or any person saying they never
sin? It just isn’t true. While I agree that we can choose not to
sin and therefore not sinning is a technical possibility, the
Bible clearly teaches that we were so wrapped up in sin before we
came to Jesus that none of us will in practicality be able to say
we have reached a state of sinless perfection. Even Paul said, he
was not already perfect in Philippians 3:12-13. But he pressed on for the goal, forgetting what
was behind him and looking ahead. II.
Sin can separate Christians from God. A.
Some people answer this question by declaring that sin
never separates them from God. We here of the Calvinistic position
of “once saved, always saved.” This teaching comes in two
forms. Some say that if a person is really a Christian, they will
never sin so bad as to lose fellowship with God, which was John
Calvin’s position. On the other hand, some teach that it
doesn’t matter how badly Christians sin, they will never lose
their fellowship with God, which is Charles Stanley’s position
in his book Eternal
Security. B.
The Bible however is quite clear. A real Christian can in
fact fall from grace and be severed from Christ. Galatians
5:4 is quite clear that any Christian who tries to go back and
be saved by the Law will fall from grace and be severed from
Christ. In Romans 6:23, Paul tells Christians that if they resubmit themselves
to be slaves of sin again, the wages of their sins will be death.
Finally, in II Peter
2:20-22, Peter is quite clear. If we become again entangled in
the ways of the world, our latter state is worse than the first. III.
God does not delight in the death of sinners and is patient
and not willing that any should perish but that all come to
repentance. A.
One of the questions often asked in this discussion is
“What if someone pulls out in front of me and I slip with a cuss
word as I crash into them and die, will I go to hell?” I can’t
answer this question with a blanket yes or no for every person.
However, I will respond by asking in what kind of God do you
believe? Do you believe in a God who is looking for the
opportunity to cast you into hell? Or do you believe in a God who
wants you to go to heaven and is doing what He can (apart from
overthrowing your free will) to get you there? I believe in the
God who wants us to go to heaven. B.
Ezekiel
18:20
says the soul who sins shall die. However, Ezekiel
18:23 follows that up saying, “Have I any pleasure in the
death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he
should turn from his way and live” (ESV). God wants us to turn
from our sins and repent. He doesn’t want us to be judged for
our sins. C.
Further, II Peter
3:8-9 says God is patient, not wanting anyone to perish. He
wants to give everyone opportunity to repent. This comforts me. It
says to me if sin has separated me from God, He will not let me
die right away but will give me time to repent and be restored to
fellowship with Him. D.
Finally, Romans
5:6-11 provides me with great comfort. It points out that if
God would send His Son to die to save us while we were yet
sinners, how much more, now that we have been reconciled is God
going to work such that we will be saved. Add to that Philippians 2:12-13 which encourages us to keep working no matter
how much we have done but adds that we can have the encouragement
to do that because we know God is working in us. We are not
working on our own. God wants us to go to heaven. He sent His Son
to die for us so we could go to heaven. How much more is He going
to work through us so that His children will not end up going to
hell because of some slip in the car? E.
I’m not saying we don’t need to work on controlling our
language. I am merely saying that this whole question mistakes our
God for some God who doesn’t care about us. And is willing for
His children to make a little slip and then slam them into hell
for it. Praise the Lord, that just isn’t our God. IV.
God is looking for growth, not perfection. A.
If God were looking for perfection in us, then there would
have been no need for Jesus’ sacrifice. As it is, God recognizes
what we did to ourselves while in the world. According to Ephesians
2:1-3, we so sinned that sin became second nature to us.
Through baptism God has cleansed us so we can walk in good works.
However, God does not remove the habits we have had. Rather, we
start the process of growing in His grace and knowledge. Take note
of II Peter 1:5-11. In
this passage, Peter explains how we can make our calling sure and
ensure our place in the heavenly kingdom. Notice however, the
surety does not come from perfection. It comes from growth. When
it explains that we must have virtue, godliness, self-control,
perseverance and all these qualities must be increasing, it states
there is still some lack of virtue, godliness, self-control and
perseverance. B.
The question we have to ask ourselves is not whether we
ever sin, but whether we are growing. If I am sinning just as much
as I always have and making absolutely no headway in any area of
sin, then I have no assurance of fellowship with God. On the other
hand, if I am improving in the fruit of the Spirit and removing
the works of the flesh (Galatians 5:16-25) then I am doing what God wants from me. V.
Willful, deliberate, rebellious sin removes the sacrifice
of Jesus. A.
Having said that God is looking for growth and not
perfection, we do need to understand that willful, deliberate,
rebellious sin removes the sacrifice of Jesus. I do not wish to
make it seem like there are levels of sin. The Roman Catholic
church has developed layers of sin, if you will, claiming some are
mortal and some are venial. Only Jesus can save us from the mortal
sins, but we can save ourselves from the venial. I do not wish to
leave that kind of impression. At the same time, I do believe the
Bible teaches there is a difference between Christians who slip
and fall during times of attack, duress and stress or Christians
who, in their present point of growth, are ignorant about some
matter and the Christian who knows something to be a sin and
willfully, deliberately and rebelliously pursues sin. B.
Hebrews
10:26-27
is very clear. “If we go on sinning deliberately after receiving
the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice
for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of
fire that will consume the adversaries” (ESV). As far as I can
tell, that takes only one infraction. Think about this, don’t we
treat our own children in the same way? Don’t we see a
difference in our children between those who are ignorant of some
issue, those who are striving to get better at something but slip
up and those who defiantly ignore our parenting and deliberately
go against our direction? God is the same. Ignorance needs
education and enlightenment. Slipping up needs discipline.
Rebellion warrants punishment. C.
Before we move on, lest anyone suggest I am teaching it is
better to let new Christians be ignorant so their sins won’t be
held against them, I will remind you that God is looking for
growth in knowledge according to II
Peter 1:5, 8. I cannot quantify God’s patience with our
ignorance as we grow. It is important that we study and grow in
knowledge so we can repent, confess and turn from the sins we are
committing through our ignorance. I have no doubt that there is a
point at which the lack of growth in knowledge is in itself seen
as rebellion and therefore every sin committed because of that
ignorance will also be seen that way. Thus, there is a difference
between deliberate rebellious sin and sin committed in ignorance,
but don’t use that as a license to wallow in ignorance. VI.
We must walk in the light and not walk in the darkness. A.
Perhaps I John
1:5-2:6 most directly addresses our initial question. On the
one hand, it draws no lines for us, but it does provide a picture
of what God wants from us. He wants us to walk in the light, not
walk in the darkness. Does walking in the light equal sinless
perfection? Are we walking in darkness the minute we have
committed any sin? Apparently not, because as John talked about
walking in the light, he said he would be lying if he said he
never sinned. Thus, the picture of walking in the light is not of
sinless perfection but of what governs our lives in general. If we
strive to submit to God’s will as best we can, growing in His
grace and knowledge, confessing our sins as we learn of them or
recognize them, we are walking in the light. On the other hand, if
sin is the general rule of our lives, then we are walking in the
darkness. B.
There are really two sides to this passage. The one side of
it explains that we do not have to fear for our souls if in our
striving to walk in the light we commit the occasional sin. On the
other side, it explains that we should not be comforted by
Jesus’ sacrifice if we are not concerning ourselves with
following the commands of God. In that case, the occasional
obedience does not make up for the general sin. C.
We need to understand one aspect of this picture. I think
we have often mistaken the place of confession. In the context of
this picture of those who walk in the light, I
John 1:9 does not mean we jump to the dark side with each sin
and then back to the light when we finally confess each sin. I
think that is the picture many of us have. I think it ironic that
many Christians look with disdain on the Roman Catholics who treat
the confessional as if they are catching up on their sins and
getting rid of them when they finally confess to their priest,
when many Christians have a similar picture with God. Christianity
is not a system of perfect confession anymore than it is a system
of perfect living. The point within this context is that
confession is part of walking in the light. The Christian who is
growing in knowledge and virtue, striving to live by the commands
and word of God examines self and lives a life of confession. It
is not an issue of catching up on our sins through confession, but
it is an issue of a life that recognizes our sinfulness and our
sins when they occur, it admits our sinfulness and admits our sins
when we recognize them, turning to God for help and forgiveness. I
can’t help but think of the tax collector who was justified not
because he specifically named all his sins, but because he
admitted his sinfulness and need for mercy (Luke
18:13), he went away justified. Consider this, if the tax
collector had prayed again an hour later, but hadn’t sinned in
between, would he be able to proclaim his righteousness or when he
went before God would he still need to confess what a sinner he
was and how much he needed mercy? The point is not that I have
just committed a sin and therefore need to confess. The point is I
have been a sinner and therefore I must always confess that I need
God’s mercy no matter how long it has been since my last sin. D.
Thus, I John 1:5-2:6
doesn’t draw any specific lines for us, but explains that
whether rebellious or not, if our life is one that walks in sin,
then we have lost our fellowship with God. However, if our life is
one that walks in the light, where sin is the exception not the
rule, and in which we confess our sinfulness and our sins as we
recognize them, then we are walking in the light and God cleanses
us of our iniquities. VII.
If we allow grace to be a license to sin, then we will die
in our sins. A.
Finally, we need to recognize that all sin is dangerous. My
big fear with what I have said is that someone will mistake me for
saying that God’s grace means some sin is ok. That is not my
point at all. Romans 6:1-2
is very clear. We are not allowed to use God’s grace as a
license to sin. God’s grace means when we are walking in the
light, He will forgive us when we sin. It does not mean that we
can be unconcerned about sin. It does not mean we are allowed to
just let sin slip by. It does not mean some sin just doesn’t
matter. If we allow grace to be a license to sin, then we will die
in our sins. B.
There are really two points to this within the context of Romans 6-8. One is a doctrinal aspect that letting grace be a
license to sin is just doctrinally incorrect. We have crucified
ourselves to sin. We who have died to sin are not supposed to live
in it any longer. We are supposed to submit ourselves as slaves to
righteousness (Romans 6:15-18). C.
However, Paul actually also makes a practical point. The
natural consequence of just letting sin slide is that sin will
once again take over our lives. We were slaves of sin when we were
out in the world. God has cleansed us and set us free from that
slavery. However, if we begin to so bank on His grace that we
don’t worry about striving to overcome sin and let some sin
slide in our lives, then sin will regain a foothold and will
eventually take over again. That will again lead to our death in
sin (Romans 6:11-14, 23). Conclusion: Our question: When does sin separate the Christian from God? My simple answer is, “I don’t know.” However, I hope I have accomplished two things tonight. If you have simply been resting in God’s grace allowing sin to slide in your life, I hope I have taken your comfort and filled you with the fear of God that you may learn to overcome your sins and walk in the light. On the other hand, if you have been striving to serve the Lord, growing in His grace and knowledge but lived in the fear that somewhere along the line you might die before you confessed some particular sin, I hope I have provided you with the comfort that we have a God who loves us, wants us to go to heaven and is working to get us there, not waiting for us to mess up and send us to hell. Let us always remember this: God loves us. If we love God, He will work all things out for our ultimate good (Romans 8:28). Let’s have faith in that God.
Glory
to God in the church by Christ Jesus
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